Dare Me
by Lauralee
Summary: There’s a new mutant in town… I've added a picture of her for all those interested!
1. Chapter One

Disclaimer:  See, there's this thing about fanfiction.  It means that I don't own jack.  I'm just a fan.  Marvel owns all the yumminess that is Wolverine and Gambit, and most everybody else too.  All original characters are mine however, and yes I would object to anyone else borrowing them without my consent.  I know, it's a double standard, but there ya go.

Summary:  There's a new mutant in town…  and I'd say she's not a Mary Jane, but that always looks pitiful, and I'm not even real sure what a Mary Jane is.  But  I like her, so I'm writing her story.  Hopefully, someone else will like her too.

Pairings: Isn't that like giving away a secret?  Of course the OFC will be involved.  And not with Scott, cause I don't like him.  You'll need to read to find out the rest.

A/N:  I used to watch the animated X-Men back when I was in high school, but that's been a while back now.  And I have, of course, watched X-Men the Movie.  I've never read any of the comics, though, so my understanding of some things might not be what it should be.  If it's distracting to you, I'm sorry.  Feel free to point things out, and I'll fix and/or work around it the best I can.

A/N 2: Wanna see what she looks like?  You can meet her here: 

**_Dare Me_**

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**_Chapter One_**

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"How de hell does Gambit get hims'lf into these situations?"  The thief practically drooled at the flesh parading around in front of him.  He turned to face Wolverine, who stood perfectly still in melee, searching.  "Is da femme here?"

"She's here," Wolverine nodded, turning towards Jean and Cyclops.  "Same smell that was all over the house at the address the Professor gave us."

"How can you tell?" Cyclops choked out as he waved a hand in front of his face, trying to dispel the gasoline fumes.  As usual, his teammate ignored him.  "Jean, can you…?"

Jean reached out softly, trying to feel out the mutant Professor Xavier had sent them for.  It was unclear why her powers were showing such a spike when they weren't newly manifested, and nobody wanted to walk into the situation unprepared.  Suddenly she jerked her head back and gasped.  

"What is it?" Cyclops asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"A lot like running into a brick wall," Jean muttered, rubbing her forehead.

"De femme mus' no like 'paths, eh?" Gambit smiled.  "Gambit un'erstan' dat feeling well.  No offense meant, o' course, Jeannie."

"Of course," Jean said wryly.  "Guess we're gonna have to do this the hard way."  The group slowly made their way into the crowd that had gathered around the desert road.  Jean rolled her eyes as the men that were with her spent as much time ogling either the cars or the women that seemed to decorate them as they did searching for their assignment.  She watched curiously as Gambit stretched a hand out to run it mere centimeters over the hood of one car, then over the torso of the girl leaning against it.  

Wolverine growled as a burly guy brushed past him, then followed the man towards the center of the gathering.  Automatically the other three followed him, until they pushed their way into the clearing.  In the center was a smaller group of people, acting almost as if they were holding court.  Money was being exchanged, as well as handshakes and manly back-pats.  As the smaller sea of people moved, Wolverine's head snapped up and Gambit muttered a soft "Merde!"  Both men stood as if in a trance, until Jean touched both of their shoulders.

"Think I figured out what's with the power spike that got the Professor's attention," Wolverine ground out.

"What?" Cyclops asked, looking around warily.  He still hadn't managed to put his finger on the mutant they were searching for.

"She's in heat."

"Merde," Gambit whispered again.

"She's in…?"  Cyclops shook his head.  "Great.  Just what the team needs.  Another animal."  Wolverine's smile showed just enough fang to make sure the leader knew that he didn't like the implication.

"Must be near the end of her cycle," Wolverine said.  "It's not uncontrollable, or anything.  But definitely there."

"Gambit t'ink he needs a cold shower."

"Shuddup, Cajun."

Just then the girl's gaze raised, severing contact with the man she'd been doing business with and landing on the group of four X-Men.  After a short pause she nodded at them, then turned back to the people surrounding her.  Wolverine snorted softly as she presented the back of her spikey black hair to them.  He watched as one of the men closest to her laid a hand on her honey colored shoulder while taking someone else's money.  The mutant's body shifted, leather pants gleamed, tank top that seemed to show off more skin everytime she moved.  She was small, he noticed.  Her head only came chin high on most of the people around her.  On her right was another, younger girl and the big guy that had pushed by the X-men earlier. 

"What the hell was that?" Cyclops questioned.

"Acknowledgment," Wolverine explained.  "She knows we're here, knows what we are.  She'll allow us to hang around till she figures out _why_ we're here."

"Allow us?" Jean snorted derisively

"It's her turf here, Red.  'Less of course you wanna fight her for it."  Wolverine raised an eyebrow at her. 

Commotion broke out for Jean could reply.  The black-haired girl threw her head back and yelled, "Let's run!"  Immediately the crowd surrounding her joined her. The cars moved to line the empty road, until only four were lined up on the highway.  Her's was on the inside, gleaming black and red.  She turned and found the X-Men again, watching them carefully for a minute, then slipped into her car.

The race was over almost as soon as it was begun.  "Da femme jus' playin' wit dem," Gambit muttered as he watched her car shoot out into the lead at the last moment.  Wolverine nodded his agreement as Cyclops' head twisted violently to follow the movement of the cars.

"I need one of those," was the leader's only comment.

The crowd pulled in on itself, centering around the winning car.  The losers were teased, jokes tossed around as easily as the money they had lost.  Once she had collected her dues, the mutant turned and started making her way towards the X-Men.  Instinctively Jean reached out to touch her mind again, trying to make it gentle and unobtrusive.

It didn't work.

A low growl ripped through the crowd.  The mutant's head tilted sideways, her upper lip curled up into a snarl as she stared at Jean.  The smaller group that Wolverine had identified as her pack moved to her back, pulling up close to her.  They uniformly crossed their arms over the chests, facing down the intruders.  She was deceptively slow as she stalked toward the other four mutants, toward Jean.

"Look down, Red," Wolverine growled.

"Wha…?" she looked at him, confused.

"Submit, you idiot woman.  You've stepped on toes, and unless you want a confrontation that's bound to end ugly, you need to back down."  Wolverine had already moved in front of Jean with Gambit and Cyclops at his sides.  Their intent was clear.  They didn't want to fight, but they'd protect Jean.


	2. Chapter Two

Disclaimer & Summary can be found on the first page.

A/N – Thanks to all my reviewers so far!  (Even those that might not like Gambit…  I guess everyone's gotta have a fault, right? I'm joking!  It's ok – just laugh now.)  I am aware that Gambit wasn't in the movie, but he's in my fic.  Don't worry, I'll go into how that happened later.  And SLW – you're right!!!  I did mean Mary Sue.  *slaps own forehead*  Blame it on the fact that I've also been watching Spider-Man repeatedly.  Many apologies for the slip.  And apparently you're all in luck – Gambit won't be in the next movie.  Much to my disappointment.  Now, have you gone to see what she looks like??  No?  Go now.  www.webheaddesign.us/defi.html

Chapter Two 

The approaching mutant watched the scene carefully, eyes moving steadily from man to man, gauging each one of them.  She measured each one, the one giving the orders, the one that had moved first to block her way towards the redhead, and the one that was simply trusted to back them both.

"Now Jean," Scott kept his voice firm as he backed up Logan's assessment of the situation.  Jean finally complied, holding her hands palm up in front of her and dropping her gaze.

The girl in front of them stopped just in front of Cyclops.  Her large green eyes held his, then moved to his companions.  She frowned when Jean looked up and held her gaze.

"I'm sorry," the telepath apologized softly, still holding her hands out as if waiting to be sniffed.  "I didn't mean to offend you."

"She's telling de truth, cher," Gambit purred as he carefully dropped his shields.  He felt his charm reach out to her, calming her into compliance.  Or so he hoped.

She moved slowly towards Gambit until she stood a few inches in front of him.  Acting as if it was the most natural thing in the world, she reached up to move the Cajun's heavy bangs away from his red eyes, then smacked his forehead lightly.  "If I don't like her messing around in my head, what makes you think I'm going to like what you're trying to do?"  Her voice flowed over him teasingly.

"Everything ok, Ty?"  It was the big guy they'd followed into the crowd.

Ty watched Jean for a little while, then nodded.  "Yeah, it's cool Andrew."

The X-Men visibly relaxed – until they heard a scream pierce the dark in front of them.  Ty spun around and crouched, her head tilted in the same manner she had used while stalking Jean.  Andrew crumpled to the ground before she could react, one of the racers that had lost standing behind him.  Ty sniffed the air, almost tentatively, searching for blood.  Thankfully, it seemed Andrew had simply been knocked out and not seriously hurt.  Then her eyes settled on the woman that made up the fourth member of her pack.  She was being held by the throat, not far from where her comrade had fallen.  A knife blade caught on one of the headlights and threw the light back into Ty's face.

Ty moved slowly, circling away from the rest of her pack.  She glanced at Wolverine, then nodded her head in his direction.  Cyclops didn't wait for the situation to be explained; instead he and Jean moved to the right of the pack, leaving Wolverine and Gambit to guard the left.

"What're we doing, homme?" Gambit's eyes moved lazily between Ty and the man she was facing.

"Protecting the pack."  Wolverine's claws slid out.

Ty had quit paying attention to anyone but the man holding a knife at her packmate's throat.  She had no doubt that the people protecting the rest of her pack had enough power to take care of anyone who wanted to keep this from being a fair fight.  She stood up straight, her long fingers flexing, claws lengthening.  The green in her eyes flecked gold, until the man was left staring into an unblinking pair of wolf's eyes.  Her top lip curled, revealing the long fangs she'd kept hidden.  When she spoke, her voice was deeper and rougher than before.  Less human.

"Let her go."

"No way in hell, freak.  You think I'm fuckin' stupid?  There's only one way you could've won that race.  You cheated somehow."  The man was taller than her by almost six inches.  His large hand was wrapped firmly around the handle of the knife.

"Yeah…" Ty purred.  "I cheated.  I smelled a loser like you comin' a mile off.  Step down, bastard.  Everyone else here knew what I am.  Not my fault you're new here."  Ty took a step forward, testing her opponet's resolve.  She stopped, snarling, when the knife bit into his captive's skin.  "You get three for every cut you give her."

"Fuck off, bitch.  You back off and give me the money I should've won, or else she dies."

"No."  Her gold eyes shone in the dark.

"You're not getting the picture, here."  The man actually laughed.  "There's only one way this goes.  You back off, give me the money you stole from me, or I gut this stinkin' freak lover."

"No."  Ty sunk into a crouch again, leaning her head to the side and looking at the tableau in front of her.  "This is how it goes.  You let her go, and I only hurt you three times as much as you've already hurt her.  Or you kill her, and I have the freshest meal I've had in a good long time."  Her red tongue touched her lips.  "So go ahead.  Kill her.  I dare you."

The entire situation exploded suddenly – one of the loser's friends jumped towards the X-Men, only to be met midair by Wolverine.  His wild snarl seemed to snap something in Ty, who lunged unexpectedly, knocking both the attacker and victim to the ground.  Her fingers tightened painfully around the hand that held the knife, pulling it away from her friend.  Once her packmate had scampered away from the danger, the scene seemed to freeze once again on the mutant and her prey.  The would-be thief and tough man was now sprawled on the ground, held there by the smaller body on top of his.  There was one knee by his side and one on his groin.  One clawed hand shoved his shoulder in the dirt.  The other drew slowly across his midsection, slicing through shirt and skin.  Blood seeped slowly from the shallow cut.

"That's one."

Now the hand was moving down his cheek, leaving another slim line of red.

"That's two."

The man suddenly began to struggle, bucking in an effort to throw his tormentor off.  The knee at his groin settled down with more pressure.  Then the hand began to move again, this time drawing a stinging line across his throat.  Inhuman eyes stared into his, then disappeared as she bent her head, bringing her tongue to the blood at his throat.

"That's three."  Her tongue slipped softly over his skin, tasting the coppery fluid.  When her head rose her lips were pulled back to expose teeth that were tinged red.  "Now if I were you, I'd run away.  Whaddya say?"  

As soon as the weight was lifted from his body the man ran backwards on his hands and feet until he reached his car.  He stood, glaring at the people in front of him, then sped away, followed by his friends that had suddenly lost all interest in furthering the confrontation.  Ty turned and walked back to the people now huddled around the shaking girl.  Her eyes faded back to green and her claws retreated again until they could resemble normal fingernails.  Only the fangs and the fierce look remained.  She pulled the crying girl to her, holding her tightly.  Without needing to be directed, her pack all retreated to their cars, waiting for her to join them.  She nodded again at the X-Men and then left.

"Well.  That was interesting."  Cyclops sighed and ran a tired hand through his hair.

"Don't worry Cyke," Wolverine grinned.  "The mission ain't over yet."

"How do you figure?" Jean asked, rubbing her temples.

"Just trust me.  Let's go get a motel room."  The tired X-Men followed, willing to try to get a good night's rest before returning to the Professor empty handed.


	3. Chapter Three

Disclaimer & Summary can be found on the first page.

A/N:  Obsessed much?  Why yes I am.  You can now find Defi's very own webpage at   Now, R&R please!!  Pretty please??

Chapter Three 

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Logan stretched and accidentally disturbed Remy, who was curled up contentedly at his side.  He blinked, reacquainting himself with the motel room where they had stayed the night.  He could hear Scott in the bed next to them fumbling for his glasses.  Unexpectedly, he heard soft laughter and realized that the X-Men were not the only ones in the room.

Logan jumped from the bed just as Scott found his sunglasses and Jean sat up sleepily.  With a strangled cry, the team leader slapped his hand over his girlfriend's eyes and glared at Logan.  What had started out as a soft laugh from across the room became steadily stronger.

"For God's sake Logan – if you're going to share a bed with Remy, don't you think you should sleep with some clothes on?"  Scott groused as Jean tried to peel his fingers away from her face, preferably sometime before Logan managed to get his jeans on.

"Oh, it's not that bad.  I thought it was an interesting way to wake up."  Ty answered Scott merrily. 

" 'Sides, Gambit still got his clothes on, cher," Remy purred.  "Ot'erwise, the ol' man wouldn't have been able to control himself, an' I need m' beauty sleep."

Logan growled at the Cajun then looked at Scott.  "Told ya she'd be back"

"Yeah, but you neglected to mention the fact that she'd sneak in while we were asleep, scare you out of bed, and that you'd be _naked_ at the time," Scott reasoned.

Ty laughed again from her vantage point next to the door.  She had taken up residence on the top of the table there, legs crossed, and proceeded to wait for the sleeping mutants to wake up earlier that morning.  "You seem to be the only one complaining about the naked part," she pointed out as Jean finally managed to peek around Scott's hand.  Unfortunately, it was too late.  "Thought I'd take y'all to breakfast, and then you could tell me what you were doing at my house last night."

"How'd you…" Gambit started to question, then stopped as she tapped the side of her nose.  Wolverine snorted, then rubbed a hand through his sleep-mussed hair.  He sat back down on the bed with a huff, crossing his legs and making room for Ty to take a seat next to him.  She smiled and sat, turning so she was half facing the door, automatically ready to leave if she didn't like what was said.

"We represent Professor Xavier's School for the Gifted," Scott automatically began his speech.  Ty stopped him before he could go any further.

"Not exactly school age," Ty pointed out, chuckling.  "And by gifted you mean…?"

"Mutants," Jean chimed in.

"I see.  Well, why don't I wait outside while y'all get dressed, and you can finish over breakfast?"  Ty stood up and stretched, one hand absently scratching her spikey hair.  Logan stopped her just as she opened the door.

"How's the girl?"  He watched the emotions playing across her face carefully.

"She's good.  Strong.  She'll be alright.  No stitches were needed."  It was hard to keep the instant rage covered.  Only the knowledge that her packmate was indeed fine made it possible.

"Good."  Logan nodded, then turned his back as Ty excused herself.

Ty made her way outside and pulled her cell phone from her pocket and flipped it open, using the quick dial to reach Andrew.  "Hey – things still cool there?"

"Yes Ty.  The house is still standing," came the gruff answer from the other end of the line.

"Not funny," Ty's eyes darkened.

"Sorry."  Andrew's voice was remorseful.  "Bad choice of words.  But yes, we're fine.  Lita's good, no shakes or anything this morning.  She's gonna be fine."

"Good.  I should be back in a few hours.  I'm taking the newbies to breakfast, then I imagine we'll be back there."  She hung up and leaned lightly against the front bumper of her car.  The X-Men came out of the room, each dressed casually.  Gambit, Scott, and Ty had sunglasses on, leaving Jean and Logan to shield their eyes from the bright morning sun with their hands.  "Ok, let's go talk," she nodded and led them to the quiet diner across the street.


	4. Chapter Four

Disclaimer & Summary can be found on the first page.  
  
A/N: Many thanks to the people that have sent me their reviews! I know I'm still not getting very descriptive, but I promise I'm trying to work on it. Just don't want lots of descriptions to get in the way of the story.  
  
  
  


_**Chapter Four**_

Ty leaned back in the booth, considering the people around her and what they had told her about their team, the school, and their mission. This computer of theirs, Cerebro, had found her and their boss had decided they should come to meet her. Professor Xavier was his name. The red head was a doctor, and one of the few mutants that had 'come out' on a national level. 

Still, with all that, what impressed her most was that they all meant what they said. She couldn't sense so much as a white lie in the way they carried themselves. She couldn't smell any stress, and they all met her eyes easily. Well, she assumed that Scott was meeting her eyes. It was hard to tell around his shades. 

"Only one thing bothers me, though," she tried hard to hold back her grin. "Cyclops? Wolverine? Gambit? Red's the only one here with a normal name." 

"We've got names!" Scott protested. "Those are just our codenames."

"Codenames, huh? Who picks your names?" Ty giggled.

"Dere be no problem namin' you, cher," Remy grinned. "You be mon Dêfi." Ty looked at him expectantly, waiting for the explanation. "Dare, mon ami," the red-eyed mutant smiled. "For daring anyone to hurt what's yours."

Ty considered it for a little while, then smiled. "I like it."

"So does that mean" Jean's question trailed off as she lifted a perfectly manicured hand to push her hair out of her face.

"Yeah, I'll go with you. Check it out, anyway," Ty nodded. She looked toward the man sitting next to her, who had remained silent throughout most of the morning. He simply nodded his approval and kept on shoveling eggs and bacon into his mouth. Suddenly he noticed her scrutiny and stopped eating long enough to pass her a piece of bacon. She chuckled and took it from him.

"Well that's a first," Jean laughed. "I've never seen Logan willingly share his food."

"Gave m' last piece of jerky t' Marie once," he mumbled around his full mouth.

"You're all heart," Scott said mockingly.

"Prick."

"Enough, boys," Jean interrupted before they could really get started.

Ty laughed at them both, her grin matching Remy's wide smile. She'd have to go back to the house, of course, and make sure Andrew knew what was going on, but she knew he'd take care of the pack. He had always been the one she trusted, and nothing would change that now. He'd watch over them and the house, making sure that it was there when she needed it again. With another smile, Ty lifted the bill for their meal from Scott's fingers and went to pay.

"I've got to go back to the house and get things straightened out before I go anywhere," Ty said as she came back to the table. "Y'all are more than welcome to come if you want, then we can head to..." She stopped, realizing for the first time that they hadn't mentioned where this school was. "Where will we be headed for?"

"Westchester, New York," Scott smiled proudly.

"New York?" Ty blinked. "How are we getting there?"

"We brought our own transportation," Jean explained. "We have a... private jet."

Logan's head lifted curiously as he caught a quick scent of fear from Ty. "I don't fly," she snorted. "I'll drive, thanks. I'd want to take my car anyway."

"Me and Gumbo can ride with her," Logan offered. "Make sure she doesn't get lost."

"Alright," Scott nodded. "We'll go with you to get your things - anything you want to take can go on the Blackbird. Then Jean and I will fly back and make sure things are ready for you." He fidgeted a little before asking, "You're going to bring the car you were in last night?"

"Nah, I'll leave that one for Andrew," Ty smirked a little. "But I don't go anywhere without my baby."

"Your...?"

"You'll see," she assured him.  



End file.
